The Political Thought of Calvin Coolidge. Thomas J. Tacoma
in politics. All of these receive a full explanation below, but suffice it to say now that each principle contained significant implications for evaluating forms of government and the policies that would sustain or undermine civilization. Backsliding from civilization into barbarism, always a real danger, was one which Coolidge strove to prevent.
Chapter 4 turns to Coolidge’s interpretation of America’s place in the story of civilization, with special reference to his understanding of the American founding. Coolidge believed in the dignity of the American founding—it was a key step in the advance of civilization. He therefore argued against those Progressive historians who contended that the principles of the Declaration of Independence were obsolete, or that the Constitution was written to secure the property interests of the wealthy. To the contrary, said Coolidge: American civilization was based on America’s spiritual heritage. From its colonial days, its people had cultivated religion and beliefs which developed into political democracy. The Declaration of Independence synthesized such beliefs and should be understood as a great spiritual document, pointing to the equality of mankind as rooted in the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man. Coolidge also presented George Washington as the exemplary statesman, one who rose above sordid motives and sacrificed everything for his nation. Beardian critiques of self-interest could not hold against Washington. Finally, Coolidge defended the drafting and ratification of the Constitution as a completion of the revolution. It brought the principles of good government into practical effect. Its long success since 1787 proved its worth—it was even a modern document, still well-adapted to modern life.
Chapter 5 steps forward to Coolidge’s own day and spells out in some detail how Coolidge’s civilizational conservatism affected his view of the American regime and how it formed the basis for his criticisms of progressive political theory. Coolidge believed that the Constitution remained relevant for his day as a charter of liberty for all. He interpreted the Constitution as a formalist, in contrast to the newer, elastic readings of the Constitution as a “living” document. Coolidge defended a smaller role for the president and strove with special vigor to uphold the independence of the judiciary. The independent judiciary was among the most fundamental elements of civilized, modern government, and progressive plans to restrict its independence were steps backward. Finally, though Coolidge rarely criticized his political opponents, he had much to say about Progressive ideas in general. Coolidge opposed the trends of centralization and growth of national governmental power. They had begun to change the very form of the American regime, to the nation’s detriment. Direct democracy was particularly to blame, but the decay of the party system was also at fault for the weaknesses of Congress as a legislative body. Coolidge also critiqued the Progressive vision of separating politics from administration. He was a student of human nature and aware that self-interest could never be removed as an element of government administration. However, Coolidge provided very little by way of an alternative to Progressive models of government regulation. This failure to articulate a more constitutional method of dealing with the real problems of modern industrial democracy was among Coolidge’s greatest shortcomings.
Chapter 6 then takes up Coolidge’s economic thought, setting it specifically in the context of his philosophy of civilization. Coolidge was a believer in economic laws, and he affirmed that civilized nations must live in accordance with such laws in order to thrive. More to the point, Coolidge believed that domestic policies should seek to maintain and advance the quality of American civilization. Since this took place mostly in the private sector—in homes, families, and churches—he believed that the best service the federal government could offer was to step out of their way. This was “constructive economy,” which he pursued through budget reduction and tax cuts. Rising material wealth for all people, even if distributed unequally, made possible the spiritual development that would genuinely improve the nation. Lastly, Coolidge opposed plans that he believed were economically unsound—such as the McNary-Haugen farm relief bill—on the basis that they pursued “expedient” solutions in violation of the laws of economics. No law or policy could be called humane which set up the whole of society for collapse.
Chapter 7 concludes with Coolidge’s philosophy as translated into the world of international affairs. American civilization existed in a global context. For it to survive and to flourish, the entire structure of world civilization needed to be defended and encouraged. While this meant pursing the good of the United States first and foremost—Coolidge often spoke of the real meaning of “America First”—it included promoting good will and neighborliness for all nations. The United States needed to maintain its own military for defensive purposes, and it needed to promote its own well-being first of all as a means of demonstrating for the rest of the world that decent self-government was possible. But Coolidge believed that the United States had a duty to promote the cause of civilization worldwide, and he did so through encouraging American citizens to help other nations. At the political level, Coolidge encouraged the efforts to codify international law such that all nations would know and understand their duties to each other. He also argued that the United States should adhere to World Court protocols as a means of promoting peace. However, he did demand that European nations pay their war debts to the United States; debt relief was an unsound policy that would undermine American confidence in their ability to pay back any loans in future times of emergency. With respect to smaller nations, and to American imperial possessions, Coolidge strove to honor American obligations while respecting the sovereignty of foreign peoples. This proved a vexing task.
My goal throughout this book is to understand Calvin Coolidge on his own terms. He represents a forgotten type in American political thought, influenced by the American tradition of moral philosophy and the Anglo-American respect for law. I would contend that his thinking on public questions could be useful for Americans today, yet my purpose has not been to speak at any time about contemporary American politics, nor even to argue for a return to Coolidge’s thought. Certainly his ideas are instructive, but such conclusions as might have contemporary application I leave to the reader. Instead, my aim has been to present Coolidge’s political thought as systematically and logically as possible with the hope that, were Coolidge able to read this study, he could see himself accurately represented in my interpretation. Whether I have succeeded is another question I leave for the reader to answer.
Notes
1.
See Joseph Postell and Johnathan O’Neill, eds., Towards An American Conservatism: Constitutional Conservatism during the Progressive Era (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013). See also their anthology, American Conservatism, 1900–1930: A Reader (Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2019).
2.
See Lonce H. Bailey and Jerome M. Mileur, eds., In Defense of the Founders Republic: Critics of Direct Democracy in the Progressive Era (New York: Bloomsbury, 2015). A similar text in this category is Jonathan Lurie, William Howard Taft: The Travails of a Progressive Conservative (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2012).
3.
See Calvin Coolidge, The Talkative President: The Off-the-Record Press Conferences of Calvin Coolidge, ed. Howard H. Quint and Robert H. Ferrell (Amherst, MA: University of Massachusetts Press, 1964).
4.
See Calvin Coolidge, Have Faith in Massachusetts: A Collection of Speeches and Messages, Second Enlarged Edition (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1919); The Price of Freedom: Speeches and Addresses (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1924); and Foundations of the Republic: Speeches and Addresses (New York: Scribner’s, 1926).
5.
Scanned transcripts of Coolidge’s presidential speeches are available through the Library of Congress’s American Memory Project, “Prosperity and Thrift: The Coolidge Era and Consumer Economy, 1921–1929,” accessed February 1, 2019, https://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/coolbib:@OR(@field(AUTHOR+@3(Coolidge,+Calvin+1872+1933
+))+@field(OTHER+@3(Coolidge,+Calvin+1872+1933+))). Coolidge’s presidential writings are also available through the American Presidency Project, online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, accessed February 1, 2019, https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/advanced-search?field-keywords=&field-keywords2=&field-keywords3=&from%5Bdate%5D=&to%5Bdate%5D=&person2=200286&items_per_page=100&page=1.